Mowbray House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mowbray House School |
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| Location | |
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Australia
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| Coordinates | 33°48′16″S 151°10′50″E / 33.804550°S 151.180464°E |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent, day and boarding school |
| Established | 1906 |
| Founder | Lancelot Bavin (Founding headmaster) |
| Status | Closed |
| Closed | 1954 |
| Key people | Sandy Phillips (Co-headmaster) |
Mowbray House is a historic building in Chatswood, Sydney, Australia. It used to be a private school for boys. Boys could attend classes during the day or live there as boarders. This special building is now listed as an important heritage site. It was once part of a site for Ausgrid, a power company. The school even had its own chapel, which is now a church called Holy Trinity Anglican Church.
A Look Back at Mowbray House School
Mowbray House School first opened its doors in 1906. It was started by Lancelot Bavin (1881–1956). He later became a local council member, known as an alderman. He was also the Mayor of Willoughby from 1927 to 1930. This was at the start of the Great Depression, a time when many people faced economic hardship.
Mr. Bavin first ran the school with his wife, Ida, and his mother, Emma. In 1914, Sandy Phillips joined as a co-headmaster. He had been a teacher at Sydney Grammar School. From then on, the school was known as Mowbray House School. Mr. Phillips stayed until 1924, when he returned to Sydney Grammar. He later became the Headmaster there.
Lancelot Bavin continued as Headmaster of Mowbray House. The school closed in 1954 because he became unwell.
Many famous Australians went to Mowbray House School for their primary education. These included Norman Lethbridge Cowper, who attended in the early years. Kenneth Slessor was a student from 1910 to 1914. Gough Whitlam, who later became Prime Minister of Australia, also went there in the early 1920s.
In more recent times, Mowbray House was part of an Ausgrid power depot site. This lasted until 2016. Then, Transport for New South Wales bought the building. By late 2017, a new tunnel for the Sydney Metro was planned nearby. The John Holland Group prepared the building to be used as offices for this construction project.
The School Buildings
Mowbray House was built in 1906. It is a two-storey building made of brick with a tiled roof. The upper part has a cream-colored finish. The building is designed in the Federation Arts and Crafts style. It has many windows with small panes and a balanced, even look. The building also features wooden brackets under the roof and unique chimneys on the corners.
The school originally had a dormitory. This room could house twenty-five boarding students. In 1917, a dining room was added to the building. The kitchen and the front of the building were also changed.
Before Mowbray House, another building stood on the site. In 1874, the Mechanics' Institute built a School of Arts there. From 1878 to 1903, the Willoughby Council used this stone building as its council chambers. When Mowbray House School opened in 1906, this old building became the school's chapel.
In 1957, the Sydney County Council took over the site. Due to public demand, the old chapel building was carefully taken apart. Each stone was moved to a new location at 44 Beaconsfield Road, Chatswood. There, it was rebuilt and is now known as the Holy Trinity Anglican Church.
